Embarrassing

Grabbing the warm toast, she placed it between her teeth, biting into it, while grabbing her bag and placing it on her shoulders.

After that, she rushed to unlock the door and get outside. She held the toast in her hand and started to chew it.

Her eyes widened in surprise when she saw Mingyu standing outside of her apartment. Leaning against the wall, he typed away in his phone.

Upon noticing her presence, he placed his phone in his pocket and stood up straight. His eyes indifferently swept over her before saying, "Let's go."

"Uh, yeah," she answered before starting to walk beside him.

Turning to look at him, she furrowed her eyebrows and asked, "Were you waiting for me for long?"

"Around five minutes. Nothing much."

She looked straight ahead and stated, "How is five minutes nothing much? It would drive me angry. If you wanted to go school together, you could have just knocked on my door."

Five minutes is nothing comparable to those excruciating long days he had to spend without her, knowing that he will never get to see her again.

The images of her being soaked in red blood still flooded his mind, unable to make him fall asleep.

If it was up to him, he would have locked her in a place where he could only see and protect. The current distance between them was too long.

However, the unfamiliarity between them made him helpless.

In his last life, he ruined her by imposing his ideas on her, being selfish and thinking what he did was for her best.

But in the end, he killed her through that.

That's why, this time, he will respect her and let her make her own decision, trusting her. When she falls back, he will be always there to support her.

Her happiness was the priority, not his selfish wishes.

"I will do that next time," he responded.

She chuckled.

"Being so obedient, you are oddly adorable," she commented.

That caught him off guard, but before he was able to think much of it, she grabbed his wrist. She pulled him forward.

"Hurry up or else the bus will leave."

The idea of running on the pavement felt weird to him, and he was hesitant about it. But Yuri's enthusiasm and momentum didn't give him a moment to mull over it.

The two of them entered the bus.

Yuri was about to pay for her ride when Mingyu pressed the card for both of them. She gave him a surprised glance.

But because of how the passengers were rushing to get in, she lost the opportunity to ask him about it.

There were no empty seats in the bus. Yuri held the hand grip for the sake of support. Mingyu's stood beside her, and his towering figure brought her a sense of protectiveness.

She was lost in her thoughts for a while.

°°°

Due to being occupied with work, the teacher was late to class. Because of this, the students were playing around in the class. Few had their books open.

Yuri hugged the soft, candy shaped pillow against her chest while leaning on the table.

"I am hungry. Why is it not lunch time yet?" she whined.

Nayoung extended her hand and patted on her head prior to saying, "There, there, only one more class before lunch. Or do you want to have snacks?"

"Tempting, but no. I am trying to be on a diet." Yuri pressed her lips into a thin line.

Nayoung stared at her friend in discontentment and pinched her cheek next before saying, "Diet? Didn't I tell you to not do something as foolish as that? Did you hear something? You are perfect as you are. Don't hurt yourself."

Yuri noticed her friend's concern and chuckled.

"I am merely being healthy."

Nayoung crinkled up her nose.

"Starving yourself isn't called being healthy. Tell her about it, Minhyuk. There is nothing wrong with her."

Minhyuk had his eyes on his phone's screen, playing the game aggressively with full concentration. Hearing his name made him answer in a distracted manner without even lifting his attention from the game.

"Yeah, yeah, it's all as you say."

Nayoung scoffed.

Her eyes fell on Mingyu next.

Those pale, long fingers held on to a pen, writing neatly on the notebook. Those messy bangs scattered on his forehead. The sunlight shining on them lightened them to a shade of brown.

"What do you think about Yuri, Mingyu?" Nayoung asked.

Mingyu's pen paused.

He lifted his head to stare at Yuri. Those steely blue eyes held a deep, unfathomable emotion, making her stiffen for a second. It felt as though all her thoughts were exposed to him.

She curled up her toes, wanting to hide from him.

"If it makes her happy, sure, as long as she is not harming herself. Otherwise, it would be entirely meaningless."

Yuri clenched her hand into a tight fist and forced out a smile, suppressing in her turbulent emotions.

"Can we now stop discussing this? This is embarrassing."